Women Journalist(s) on Celluloid: Understanding the Portrayal of Female Journalist(s) in Hindi Cinema

Women journalist(s) have been portrayed in a number of Hindi films. This article examines the portrayal of women journalist(s) in Bollywood cinema. As the practice and profession of journalism has evolved over the years, so has the representation of journalism on screen. Many media reports suggest that even in the 21st century women continue to face hurdles in their professional journey as a journalist. The visual representation of female journalists plays a crucial role in constructing a social identity of women newsmakers. The objective of analysing media representations is to determine the beliefs and attitudes that go into the choosing of words and images that seek to depict real life, as well as what this can imply about the positions of the groups being portrayed. This article discusses how women journalists have been portrayed in Bollywood journalism films over the last two decades (2000-2020). It looks into whether these movies encourage or denigrate female journalists. The study contends that there is a mutually beneficial interaction between the news media and society seen in the explicit depictions of journalism in Hindi movies.